


I Will Follow You (Into the Dark)

by beyondthesefourwalls



Category: 9-1-1 (TV)
Genre: Established Relationship, Getting Together, Hurt/Comfort, I Will Go Down With This Ship, M/M, Prompt Fic, Tumblr Prompt, Whump, buddie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-29
Updated: 2020-02-29
Packaged: 2021-02-27 23:54:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22960528
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/beyondthesefourwalls/pseuds/beyondthesefourwalls
Summary: For the Tumblr Prompts:"Eyes on me" and "I never want to see white walls again"---His vision was hazy, and he thinks he might have lost consciousness at some point because he doesn’t remember exactly how he got here, and all of a sudden there was near unbearable pain. There were a multitude of people yelling his name from somewhere above him, and he could hear Cap telling him to call out through the radio.“Eddie, answer us!”
Relationships: Evan "Buck" Buckley/Eddie Diaz (9-1-1 TV)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 336





	I Will Follow You (Into the Dark)

**I Will Follow You (Into the Dark)**

****

**_Prompts:_ **

_“Eyes on me.”_

_“I never want to see white walls again.”_

* * *

The day had gone from good to bad to worse.

Good because Buck had stayed the night and woken up beside him and cooked breakfast for him and Christopher.

Bad because the day had been filled with back to back to back bad calls. Car accidents with no survivors, house fires breaking up families, and suicide jumpers on the side of a bridge, rinse and repeat.

Worse because an earthquake had occurred less than two hours ago, and he was currently trapped under part of the apartment building the 118 had been evacuating and there was a piece of debris pressing awkwardly into his stomach.

His vision was hazy, and he thinks he might have lost consciousness at some point because he doesn’t remember exactly how he got here, and all of a sudden there was near unbearable pain. There were a multitude of people yelling his name from somewhere above him, and he could hear Cap telling him to call out through the radio. 

“Eddie, answer us!”

That was Buck, he recognized. He sounded distressed, worried, and Eddie felt bad being the cause of that. They had promised whenever they started this thing that they had going, that was still undefined even three months later, that they would do their best to never hurt the other like they had been hurt so many times in the past. This was different and he knew that, but hurt was hurt.

Blindly, with a painful groan, he brought a hand up to his shoulder. With more strength than what it should have called for, he pressed down on it. “This is Diaz.”

He thought he could almost hear the collective sigh of relief from his team.

“Are you hurt?” Bobby asked, and Eddie took a moment to focus on all he was feeling.

Yeah, he was hurt.

“I think – I’m pinned.” He groaned when the concrete resting on top of him shifted as he spoke. “Got a piece of debris on top of me. A few broken ribs, and I think I’m bleeding somewhere. I can’t move, Cap.”

The panic was starting to set in now that he was fully conscious and aware of his surroundings, and as the pain really registered in his mind.

“Eddie, we’re going to get you out of there. You just need to hang tight for us, okay? Try and stay calm.”

That was easier said than done.

“You-you got it, Cap.”

“Eddie…” That was Buck again, and that wasn’t his firefighter voice, but the voice of a distraught best friend. Because even if they had been exploring more, at the end of the day, Buck would always be his best friend.

It had been on a rainy Tuesday, three months ago, that things between them had shifted. They had been enjoying the day off, knowing that if they were at work it would be constant calls because of the rare Los Angeles wet weather and how everyone seemed to forget to drive in it. Christopher was away at camp, and Eddie hadn’t even thought twice of showing up to Buck’s with no notice or invitation, a case of beer in hand.

They had maybe had a little bit too much to drink and had blindly been watching the TV in front of them when Buck abruptly announced that he was thinking of experimenting with men. After nearly choking on his beer, Eddie had demanded an explanation, to which Buck had revealed he had been curious lately, and he wanted to test the theory. Another beer and Eddie letting out that he had once done some experimenting of his own, because “it was the Army, Buck,” Buck revealed it had been him that he was attracted to. He had fumbled through an apology, of all things, and pleaded with Eddie to forget it and to please not let it ruin their friendship. It had been so unlike Buck’s normal confident swagger, and maybe it was the alcohol in his system that gave him the courage, but Eddie couldn’t help but lean forward and place a kiss on his cheek.

What had followed was a night of hesitant kisses and awkward laughs. They had had a serious conversation when they were both sober the next morning, and what followed was months of exploratory touches and tender embraces. They didn’t put names on anything, but the dynamic had changed and everyone was aware of it. They hadn’t made an announcement of any kind, but the lingering touches, or the hugs after close calls, the shared half smiles and the occasional pet names were enough of a sign. No one had questioned them, had just accepted it for what it was, and that was all the confirmation that whatever this was, was the right move.

He was brought back to the present by Buck saying his name again, this time a little more frantic.

“Hey,” he responded back, because what else was there to say?

“How you doin?”

“Oh, you know, just hanging out,” he joked weakly. 

“We’re going to get you out, you hear me?” Buck demanded, “I’m coming down to you.”

“Kay,” Eddie responded softly, letting his hand fall away from his radio and not bothering to warn him how tight a fit it was – he learned a long time ago that the voice Buck used was the determined one where you couldn’t talk him out of anything.

He didn’t know how long he laid there, but he knew the pain was getting worse in some areas and he was going painfully numb in others. He heard rubble being shifted around, could hear his team planning and communicating through the coms, and knew they were on their way to him, but he couldn’t focus on that.

If he was being honest, he was having trouble focusing on anything now.

Buck eventually came into view, slowly dropping down to where Eddie was pinned. He could see the harness around him and the focused look on his face morph into worry.

“Hey,” he said, his voice as weak as the wave he tried to give. His limbs were so heavy.

“Hey yourself,”

Buck made his way, slowly but surely, over to him, and they both breathed a sigh of relief when they made contact. Their eyes stayed trained on the other for a moment before Buck went into firefighter mode.

“1-10?” 

1-10 was a system they had come up with shortly into their partnership as a way. To communicate how bad a situation was without alarming any civilians. Eddie wondered for whose benefit he was using it for now. 

“It’s bad, carino,” he whispered, “I’m starting to go numb.”

Buck looked up at him from where he had been assessing the debris covering him. Eddie could tell he was doing his best not to look alarmed.

“Cap,” he spoke into the radio, “there’s too much unstable debris down here to bring down the balloon. I’m going to have to get this off of him by myself.”

“Buck,” he said, ignoring what Bobby was saying over the radio about being careful and having hands ready. He knew extraction wouldn’t be easy. He was in a tight space, having fallen through cracks of flooring that had crumbled, and the building around them wasn’t stable. More debris was falling around them at every moment, and he had heard the chief call for complete evacuation from his radio a few moments ago. “You need to go.”

He doesn’t think he’s ever seen Buck’s head move so quickly.

“Excuse me?”

“This isn’t – isn’t safe.”

"You’re out of your mind if you think I’m leaving you, Eddie.” As he spoke, Buck was maneuvering himself to get a grip on the heavy piece of concrete holding him down. Ignoring the warning calls from the team, he started to shift it. He couldn’t help the scream of pain that he let out. Buck had given him no warning, probably for the best to keep from tensing up, but it didn’t make it any less painful.

“Eddie. Eddie, look at me.”

He could feel the tears sliding through the dirt and grime on his face. It hurt, with every single breath that he took. Now that it was coming off of him, it was the most excruciating pain he had ever felt – it was like a million knives were stabbing him at one time in the stomach, and his legs were pins and needles. The world was spinning around him as his vision went in and out.

“We’re going to get you out of here, you hear me? But I need you to help me. I need you to try and move toward me, okay? Try and roll toward me.” 

Eddie shook his head, not being able to process the words or the thought of following them.

“Babe,” Buck called again, “I need you to look at me. Eyes on me.”

Eddie listened to him, his glassy eyes meeting Buck’s own tear filled gaze. He could see through the helmet his face turning red in exertion – since he started lifting, he hadn’t let the concrete slab fall back onto him entirely and he knew it had to be at least 300 pounds.

“I know it hurts. But I just need you to come to me, just a little bit. I need to get you out of here.”

He could hear the desperation and determination mixed together in Buck’s voice, and Eddie knew, despite all the pain, that he would have to do something to take it away. He sucked in a breath as much as he could and bared down. He couldn’t help the scream that tore from his lips when he shifted to his right. Buck encouraged him with every movement, and Eddie was unashamed of the sobs falling from his lips at how much this was killing him. It felt like forever before he could collapse in relief. He heard the slam of Buck dropping what had been holding him down right before he felt his arms envelope him.

“I got you,” he promised, “I got you.”

Debris was falling around them, and their team was calling frantically for them to move, move, move. But Buck held onto him with everything he had, their helmets resting together as they tried to find purchase with one another, and he knew that he was falling in love with this man who would do anything he could to protect him. His last thought before falling unconscious was that he knew it was safe to do so, because Buck would get him out of here.

* * *

He blinked into consciousness slowly.

The first thing he registered was white. White walls, white sheets, white curtains and white ceilings. White, white white. Mixed in with the strong scent of antiseptic, and he knew he was in the hospital.

The second thing he registered was the pain, and that hit him so hard he started gasping at the intensity.

“Hey, hey, hey,” he heard, right before he felt a hand on his face while the other gripped one of his own. He recognized the feel of the skin instantly.

Buck.

He calmed down just the tiniest bit when his eyes met his, but the pain was rattling.

“Hurts,” he croaked out, and Buck nodded before he reached out and pushed a button near his bed. After a moment, the pain started receding. His body relaxed into the stiff bed beneath him.

“Hey,” he said when he felt stable enough to talk without waves of nausea crashing into him.

Buck squeezed his hand in response. “Hey yourself,” he said, a typical response without the typical playful flare that usually accompanied it. “You scared the shit out of me, Diaz.”

"Now-now you know how I feel, you danger magnet.”

The younger man huffed out a laugh as he moved to the end of the bed to pour Eddie a cup of water to help with the dry mouth he was experiencing. He sucked down on the liquid gratefully.

“How’s your pain?”

“Better now,” he said truthfully.

“That’s the morphine talking.”

“No doubt,” Eddie managed a smile for a moment before it dropped back down. He held his hand out and waited for Buck to take it before asking his question. “What’s the damage?”

Buck sighed, running a hand down his face. The stress surrounding him was palpable.

“Five broken ribs. One punctured a lung. By the time we got you out, there was a lot of internal bleeding. Surgery went fine – no complications, just long – but recovery will undoubtedly by a bitch. You managed to get a pretty decent concussion as well.”

Eddie nodded, shifting through a wince as he did his best to get comfortable.

“Easy,” Buck admonished lightly, rubbing his thumb over Eddie’s hand where he held it. it was quiet between the two for several extended moments before Buck stood from where he had perched on the side of the hospital bed. “I should go get your nurse.”

Two hours later, after nurses and doctors alike had come in, poked and prodded and spoke to Eddie about his injuries and explained what the healing process would be like, and after the team and Abuela and Christopher had made their way in and out of the hospital room to visit with the patient, Buck and Eddie were alone again. The former had been quiet throughout the visits but had stayed vigilant by Eddie’s side. Despite it just being the two of them now, he still held tension in his shoulders and in the crease between his eyes.

“Talk to me,” Eddie requested softly.

Buck sighed as he moved the chair beside the bed closer, resting his elbows on the mattress and his chin in his hands. “I just hate seeing you in here. We’ve been in way too many hospitals in the last few years.”

Eddie snorted in response, but grabbed Buck’s hand nonetheless. He brought it to his lips, kissing the calloused skin.

“Between you, me, and the rest of the team, I never want to see white walls again.”

Buck nodded his head in agreement. “Don’t be surprised if I end up painting all the walls in your house a different color, man.”

He couldn’t help but smile at the mental image that supplied. “I’m sure Chris would love that little project. Consider it a date.”

Buck got that pensive look on his face again and sighed when Eddie questioned him for it.

“This all just really scared the shit out of me, babe. Like I’ve been scared before and I worry for the team on every single call. But seeing you laying there crushed and not knowing – “

“Stop,” Eddie cut in, and the other man’s eyes widened in surprise. “I knew you would get me out.”

“You asked me to leave you,”

Eddie winced.

“I know. That was stupid. I also knew it wouldn’t do any good because you’re stubborn as all hell. But I wanted you to be safe. The building was literally falling down around us.”

“I have your back, Eddie. Always. I don’t care if it’s a fire or a crumbling building or a natural disaster. I will _always_ come after you.”

It wasn’t the words that took Eddie by surprise, but the way he was saying them. He was desperate and passionate and sincere, like he _needed_ for Eddie to understand. His eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

“I hear you,” he said, but Buck shook his head.

“No you don’t,” he insisted, taking his hands from Eddie’s and moving from the chair to sit on the edge of the hospital bed. He ran one of his hands through Eddie’s hair before he let it rest on the side of his throat, his thumb rubbing against his pulse point, featherlike and soft. “You’re my best friend, man. But I – I don’t want to do this dance with you anymore. Today made me realize that. I want you. All of you. As a best friend and as a boyfriend and as _everything_ , Eddie. I just want _you_ ,” he ended softly.

Eddie could feel the tears in his eyes and he nodded.

“I want you, too. And I will always have your back. You know that, don’t you?”

“I know. Always.”

"Always. It’s you and me,” Eddie murmured, turning his head slightly to kiss the other man’s skin.

“And Chris,” Buck added, and his heart soared with adoration for this man.

“And Chris,” he agreed, “Come here.”

He shifted as far over as he could without the pain getting too much, encouraging Buck to join him all the way on the bed. Once the two were situated lying down, he leant forward and placed a soft kiss on his lips.

“I think I’m going to fall in love with you,” he whispered, knowing it to be true and knowing that he was already more than halfway there.

“That’s good,” Buck responded, “because I think I might already be in love with you,”

When Eddie was released from the hospital two days later, if he came home to his walls being tones of beige and yellow, he didn’t comment on it.

**Author's Note:**

> Leave a review or kudos if you're so kind (:


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